AVONDALE, Ariz. — The 2023 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series season came to an excruciatingly painful end for both Corey Heim and Grant Enfinger in the final race.
Heim had 15 consecutive top-10 finishes entering last year’s finale at Phoenix Raceway, and he had the hot hand early by winning the pole. He led 47 laps early and was running the highest of the Championship 4 for nearly the entire race.
That is, until Carson Hocevar spun him out while battling for sixth.
COREY HEIM GOES AROUND AFTER A BUMP FROM CARSON HOCEVAR. 👀 #Championship4 https://t.co/pH6caLPYLX pic.twitter.com/7D6kI92H1j
— FOX: NASCAR (@NASCARONFOX) November 4, 2023
With Heim out of the equation, the battle for the championship then came down to Enfinger and Ben Rhodes, with Hocevar trailing further back. Enfinger was running third behind Zane Smith and Christian Eckes with 3 to go, and he was going to cruise to the title until Heim brought out a caution by retaliating against Hocevar.
CARSON HOCEVAR IS DONE FOR THE NIGHT. Corey Heim sent him into the wall. https://t.co/Vb4xP3JH8w pic.twitter.com/Gap4jU4SNp
— FOX: NASCAR (@NASCARONFOX) November 4, 2023
We all know what happened next. Four overtimes, 29 extra laps and an absolutely embarrassing display of driving from almost the entire field. Heim’s retaliation ultimately cost Enfinger his first Truck title, as he finished one spot eventual champion Rhodes in sixth.
While obviously heated in the immediate aftermath of the race, Enfinger said that last year’s incident is now water under the bridge.
“[Heim] tried to talk to me that night after the race and obviously knew what had happened, and it just is what it is,” Enfinger said. “I mean, at the end of the day, we have chaos in every one of these Truck Series races, I think to some extent more than others.
“Obviously, the championship race last year was a little bit of a black eye for maybe our series, our sport a little bit. But that’s in the past, and no, I don’t carry a grudge around. But still motivated to win our championship this year.”
After being three laps away from a championship, Enfinger then had to scramble and find a new ride for 2024 after GMS Racing closed down immediately after the race.
He found a ride with CR7 Motorsports through an alliance with McAnally-Hilgemann Racing, and while the season had a rocky start, Enfinger and the No. 9 team found their stride toward the end of the regular season, contending for wins at Pocono Raceway, Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park and Richmond Raceway while qualifying for the playoffs on points.
The team then turned on the jets in the Round of 8, as Enfinger scored back-to-back wins at Talladega Superspeedway and Homestead-Miami Speedway in October to clinch his second straight and third overall appearance in the Championship 4.
It’s a spot Enfinger said he expected to be in at the start of the season.
“I think for me and Jeff, we definitely expected to be here,” Enfinger said. “We did not expect to have as many struggles as we did at the beginning of the year. But yeah, it’s a huge accomplishment for everybody at CR7 Motorsports, regardless of the outcome tomorrow. We’re going to look back and say, ‘hey, this has been a good year.'”
By clinching a spot at Talladega on Oct. 4 — more than a month ago — Enfinger and the No. 9 team have been able to prepare for Phoenix in a way that they haven’t been able to prepare for any other race this season.
“I feel like Talladega has been a year ago now,” Enfinger said. “Definitely gave us some extra time to prepare [with] a lot more time at the simulator. For us, we’ve never been to the wind tunnel all year, so we actually got a truck in the wind tunnel. Huge thank you to team Chevy for allowing us to do that. But that’s one of the opportunities locking in early allowed us to do that we really wouldn’t have otherwise.”
That extra Phoenix preparation and the team’s hot hand (two wins and eight top 10s in the last 10 races) have both Enfinger and crew chief Jeff Stankiewicz feeling good about their chances.
“I feel like Jeff has been smelling blood in the water since Talladega, and he’s been on kill,” Enfinger said. “I’ve been on kill, and I feel like just from a preparation standpoint and really just from how everything’s lined up, I feel like we’ve actually got a small advantage now, and I feel like we’re in a good situation for tomorrow night.”
Heim is back in the Championship 4, like Enfinger, for the second consecutive year with six wins, 13 top fives and more than 600 laps led, and he’s looking to win the title that could’ve been last season.
“I guess in the championship race last year, I think we just had so much speed and had a really good opportunity to close out that race and didn’t, and that certainly put a chip on my shoulder to come back and do it this year,” Heim said. “I think we were the best truck out of the four last year, and to come back and have a shot at it again, is definitely a chip on my shoulder for sure.”
By his own account, Heim has improved as a driver in his second full-time season with TRICON, especially when everything’s on the line in the final stage.
“I feel like the entire 2023 season, I kind of struggled to close the races out, and that was the name of the game for us,” Heim said. “We were able to put together a great first and second stage and be there in position for stage three, and just didn’t ever on my end be able to close the deal. So this year I’ve definitely gotten better at that, and hope to have that relay in this championship race.”
Heim, who will be returning to TRICON for a third straight year in 2025, is hoping to have the fastest truck like last year and win on pure speed, but he ultimately has to keep what happened in overtime for last year’s race in the back of his mind.
“I try not to think about that too much, to be honest with you,” Heim said. “Our goal is to go out and win, lead the most laps and never have to pass anyone. Just go and dominate. That’s definitely the goal, but I guess you always have that chance that it’ll turn into a mess.”
The two will be battling Eckes and Ty Majeski for the championship, and the series is guaranteed to crown a first-time champion this season.
About the author
Stephen Stumpf is the NASCAR Content Director for Frontstretch and is a three-year veteran of the site. His weekly columns include “Stat Sheet” and “4 Burning Questions.” He also writes commentary, contributes to podcasts, edits articles and is frequently at the track for on-site coverage.
Can find on Twitter @stephen_stumpf.
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Never have I heard Heim publicly apologize for screwing Enfinger out of the championship last year. That was a stupid bit of retaliation against Hocevar that cost an innocent driver the biggest prize in the truck series with only 3 laps to go. Sure, Hocevar deserved it, but go kick his ass after the race.